Category Archives: Author questions

On my blog I like to bring you interviews and guest posts with authors I think you will like. Today I am delighted to welcome RACHAEL FEATHERSTONE to the Coffee & Roses Author Spotlight with a brilliant guest post to celebrate her very first novel, Puzzle Girl, which publishes today! Over to you, Rachael…
I never knew if this day would actually come. If my dream that had once felt so far away would become a reality. It’s been a long road to get here and I’ve had some amazing support along the way from my agent, publisher and family and friends. So many people ask me, ‘what does it feel like to have your first novel published?’ I answer, ‘Amazing!’ ‘Incredible!’ ‘A dream come true!’ It can be hard to put into words how much goes into publishing your debut. But the closer I came to publication, the more I began to realise that publishing Puzzle Girl has felt a lot like getting married.

It all started with the proposal: Accent popped the question and I said, ‘Yes, yes, yes!’

We set the date for the big day – 16th March 2017 – and it felt soooo far away. 15 months to wait! But it was probably a good thing because there were so many things to organise.

What was I most excited about? The wedding dress – aka the cover of the book. I was lucky that Accent’s designer took on board my ideas and I love the finished cover!

So many of us dream about having the perfect wedding, we want everything to be just right. And it was no different with publishing Puzzle Girl. We edited with a fine-toothed comb and planned out everything from the perfect wedding invite (aka the blurb of the book) to the perfect honeymoon (my two-week blog tour).

As for the hen night? Well that was my book launch. We celebrated on 2nd March, the event hosted by my best man – my literary agent, David Headley – at Goldsboro Books. It was such a fun evening and I got to sign copies of the limited edition hardback, which is exclusive to Goldsboro.

And of course, there had to be wedding cake!

And today the big day is finally here. My husband and I (my actual husband, not the book!) are having a celebratory lunch. Then this evening we invite all of you to join in for the publication day reception party on Twitter! There will be several Puzzle Girl party bags to be won as well as an hour and a half of Twitter chatter. I hope you can join us! x

Thanks so much to Rachael for a fantastic guest post – and happy P-Day!

Rachael lives in Hampshire with her husband Tim. Puzzle Girl is out today, published by Accent Press. You can follow Rachael on Twitter, on Facebook and visit her website.

Clued-up career girl Cassy Brookes has life under control until one disastrous morning changes everything. When she finds herself stuck in a doctor’s surgery, a cryptic message left in a crossword magazine sends her on a search to find the mysterious ‘puzzle-man’ behind it. Cassy is soon torn between tracking down her elusive dream guy, and outwitting her nightmare workmate, the devious Martin. Facing a puzzling love life, will she ever be able to fit the pieces together and discover the truth behind this enigmatic man?

Well, it’s been a very strange year, with lots of ups and downs, but one silver lining(pardon the pun) has been the fantastic response from you about the return of my vlogs. For this week’s vlog, I asked for your festive questions – and you gave me some great ones!

Which location makes me think of Christmas? Am I going to write any more novels set in New York? How many notebooks do people buy me for Christmas? These questions and more feature in a very festive vlog with special guests, a #LegoElvis exclusive newsflash (so exciting!) and even a bit of singing from me! Plus, I offer my advice for creating great vlogs for anyone interested in becoming a vlogger.

All this year, I’m vlogging about writing and publishing my seventh novel, A Parcel for Anna Browne. This week, very exciting news about the book and your questions answered…

I’ve had a right old game with YouTube to get this video to upload, so apologies that the quality is not as good as you’re used to. All will be fixed next week, I promise, so bear with me while I do battle with the YouTube gods, Game Of Thrones-style!

Questions this week come from Anna @AnnaMansell and Katy @katynotwedordead (both on Twitter – do follow them, they’re fabulous writers!). So I’m talking about how you can find a good manuscript critique service that will actually be worth investing in; and how to move on to new stories once a book is finished.

This year, in addition to my regular vlogs about about writing and publishing my seventh novel, A Parcel For Anna Browne, I’m also doing a series of special vlogs each looking at one aspect of writing…

THIS WEEK: WHY SHOULD YOU FINISH WRITING YOURBOOK?

I meet so many writers who tell me they’ve only written a few chapters of their book and sent it off to agents without finishing a first draft of the whole thing. And others who have written most of the book, but have found it got difficult, boring or something stopped them writing it. It’s a very common problem for writers!

So, in this vlog, I’ll tell you why you should finish your book and talk about some of the things that hold you back. There’s also a scary thought and a Wurdy dare, so you have been warned!

All this year, I’m vlogging about writing and publishing my seventh novel, A Parcel For Anna Browne. This week, I reveal the truth about my very short-lived acting career and talk about the constant threat to writers’ – ahem – behinds…

Before you get to do your dream job, the question you’re asked most often is what you’d like to be doing. When you are doing the job you’ve dreamed about for years, what everyone wants to know is what you’d be doing if you weren’t doing it! So, this week I reveal my infamously odd previous employment history, including the reason my fledgling acting career was scuppered as soon as it had begun.

Fantastic questions this week come from Jennifer Joyce (about my favourite snacks for writing), Rosemary Umbers (on balancing being a full-time writer and a full-time mum) and Peachy Outlook (on what I would be doing if I wasn’t a writer).

All this year, I’m vlogging about writing and publishing my seventh novel, A Parcel For Anna Browne. This week, key words, Christmassy book plans and books I’m excited about reading this year!

I’ve been having a lot of fun working on some new projects before the page proofs for A Parcel for Anna Browne arrive. Which gives me lots of time to answer your fab questions which this week come from Katie Marsh, Julie Williams and Jennifer Joyce. What were my three key words for writing APFAB? Am I writing a Christmassy book this year? And which books am I getting very excitedabout reading this year?

Enjoy!

p.s. This week’s YouTube-nominated freeze-frame is entitled, ‘Where did you get that hat?’

All this year, I’m vlogging about writing and publishing my seventh novel, A Parcel For Anna Browne. This week, why being a daydreamer is crucial if you’re a writer and I answer more of your lovely questions!

At school, all of my reports said I would do better if I ‘did less daydreaming’. But today I’m proud to daydream for a living… In this week’s vlog I’ll explain why I think you have to be a daydreamer if you want to write and why, right now, I’m in my ‘daydreaming stage’.

All this year, I’m vlogging about writing and publishing my seventh novel, A Parcel For Anna Browne. This week, I answer some of your lovely questions!

I’ve had lots of lovely questions sent in since my last vlog and will be answering them over the next few vlogs. So, if your question isn’t answered this week, don’t panic, I’ll get to it soon.

So, this week I’m talking abouthow to cope with P-Day nerveswhen your book hits the shelves, character names and titlesand how important it is to get the right ones andwhich of my books I enjoyed writing the most. Questions come from Becca’s Books, Simona Elena and Lauren Riley. Thank you for your questions!

This year, in addition to my regular vlogs, I will be posting a series of special vlogs, each focusing on a specific aspect of writing. For the first one, I’ve tackled something really personal: how do you write when life is tough?

This year has been a mix of highs and lows already. Right in the middle of doing a big edit on my seventh novel, A Parcel for Anna Browne, my beloved 93 year-old Gran suffered a massive stroke and passed away.

It broke my heart and stopped me in my tracks.

I didn’t want to write. I couldn’t think about my book – even though I loved it, even though I’m so excited to be getting to tell the story I’ve been wanting to write for a very long time. How do you write when something like that happens?

I hope this vlog gives some answers.

I’d love to know what you think. And if there’s a question you’d like me to answer in a future special vlog, please comment below or email me: mirandawurdy@gmail.com

From Miranda

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